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"He’s not like any man I’ve ever known," she told her enerous He has the h with him more than I have with anyone else I’ve ever ent Everyone looks at us and all they see are the differences, but beneath it all we share the same values, the sa how much he envies me my family, and if he ever had one of his own he’d make sure he would be the kind of husband and father ht they’d stood out and gazed at the heavens "And while he’d never openly admit it, he loves Christmas He helped me put up decorations without a word of complaint He has a Nativity set from when he was a kid and admitted he sets it up every year I don’t think anyone else knows he does that" She sone fro paper snowflakes frohed "I can only iht of that"

"The truth is, Mom, I don’t think he minded For all I know, they are still up They should have been stars, though, instead of snowflakes"

"Oh?"

"After the snowstorm had died doe stood outside under the stars Oh, Moht sky is in Alaska All those stars--I’ve never seen anything that could compare to it They were like fairy dust sprinkled across the heavens I think it was on that starry night that I realized I was falling in love with Finn"

He’d felt it, too, Carrie knew Everything had changed between theical, wondrous, with his arms around her He would never admit it, but those few minutes under the stars had shaken Finn They’d deeply affected her as well

"What about his family?" her mother asked

"His mother is wonderful, and she loves her son and wants to be reunited with hi with that" He’d never come out and say as s that had happened, things he’d said and done He wanted to ignore the fact that he had a ht, he still cared

"He seereat deal at the moment," her mother said

"He is," Carrie agreed, and like her, he was hurting She wondered if he thought about the things they’d discussed when he’d been with her over Thanksgiving He’d told her his dreams and she’d shared her own, and while they lived in different worlds, they’d found co unreasonable about all this, Carrie mused If Finn wanted to clear his conscience and be done with the relationship all in one fell swoop, she shouldn’t stand in his way This hat he wanted No one could write about him the way she could Carrie suspected that outside of Sawyer, fe Finn better than she did

"I’m afraid, Mom--afraid I will never love anyone as deeply as I do Finn"

"Oh, honey, you can’t see it now, but in time you’ll be able to re someone shouldn’t hurt like this"

"True," her mother whispered, and placed her arm around Carrie’s shoulders "And in the future, when you’re able to look back, I promise you it won’t hurt as intensely as it does now You’ll feel sad for what one"

Later, after all the salads had been made and the dishes washed and put away, Carrie retreated to her childhood bedroo the conversation with her ood talk, and while she didn’t hold outfor a text or call from Finn

There wasn’t one

In a couple of hours, Carrie would be joining her family for Christmas Eve services at their church She wasn’t much in thehome Church was exactly where she needed to be This was Christe her e to hiht and re, Carrie woke and waited for the dark cloud that see over her head to return It didn’t She sat up in bed with a deep sense of peace She’d followed her heart, and while she would always love Finn, she was ready toto allow her current sorrows tomovement in the kitchen, she knew her parents were up They enjoyed their ether How fortunate she was to have parents who continued to love and care for each other Carrie didn’t want to disturb their special tiether and headed into her tiny bathrooe in Carrie’s attitude right away "I feel better," she said, hugging both her parents "I’ to be okay now"

"I know you will be," herman a piece ofFinn Dalton up by his thuirl"

"Oh, Daddy," Carrie chided, loving hihter

By noon her brother and his family had stopped by for breakfast on their way to his in-laws’ All the gifts had been opened, and Carrie was busy in the kitchen, helping herset up for their buffet, when the doorbell chimed

"That’ll be Charlie," her father called out frotime family friend who’d remained a bachelor He made sure he was one of the first to stop by for the feast, clai he never ate better than Christmas Day at Nick and Patty’s

Carrie and her otten the food displayed on the table

"That Charlie," herdown a pitcher of water "He comes earlier every year"

"It’s probably the only decent dinner he eats," Carrie added, as she followed her reet him

Only it wasn’t Charlie who stood in therooether